You could see it at Circle Bay Yacht Club in Stuart and at the boat ramp at Leighton Park in Palm City.
“The water out here is nasty," said boater Chris May.
Algae once again cropping up along the St. Lucie riverbanks.
“It’s sad it’s gross, it’s not how Florida is supposed to be. It’s supposed to be beautiful," said Samantha Landi as she prepared to head out on the water.
Some are starting to fear this could be a repeat of the summer of 2013, when toxic algae was prevalent in the St. Lucie River, keeping people out of the water for much of the year.
“This is gross. This is sad. I can’t believe they’re letting this happen," said May.
Signs are already up in some areas warning people not to come in contact with the water. Over at Cove Road Park in Stuart, there were no signs, no sign of algae, and children swam to cool off.
“Obviously if the kids have open cuts or things like that, we shouldn’t have them in the water. That’s just asking for trouble," said mom Cerice Pearson.
What kind of trouble this newly spotted algae is remains to be seen as the state has not tested it yet.
Samples taken by the Department of Environmental Protection back on May 19th from the St. Lucie River did contain toxins, but well below levels that would be considered harmful to your health.
At the Palm City bridge, a Kilroy water monitor Monday showed very low salinity levels. Combine that with the added freshwater discharges from Lake Okeechobee through the St. Lucie Lock by the Army Corps of Engineers, and environmentalists say it creates a more favorable environment for the algae to survive.
